A serial sex offender who went on a “nightmare” rampage attacking six lone women, including four in under four hours, has been give a life sentence behind bars.
Joshua Victorin, 25, from Walworth, approached each of the women from behind, disguised in dark clothing, a hooded top and a face mask, before sexually assaulting them on streets across south London.
He had only been released from prison – having been given a 12-month jail sentence for sexual assaults on two female prison guards and a police officer – a matter days before he started the horrendous attacks.
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On Thursday (December 16) he was handed a life sentence with a minimum term of eight years and eight months at Inner London Crown Court, having pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted rape and four charges of sexual assault.
Victorin pulled down woman’s jogging bottoms as she got off bus
In one case, he had attempted to rape a woman by pushing her against a wall and exposing his genitals. The victim’s screaming alerted a passer-by, with Victorin quickly pulling up his clothing and escaping.
Victorin first struck on the evening of December 23, when he followed a woman as she got off a bus in Peckham.
He pulled down her jogging bottoms, causing her to fall to the floor before fleeing when the woman’s screams alerted a passer-by.
In his second attack, he had ambushed a woman in Elephant and Castle at around 8pm on December 31.
He had attempted to drag her by the ankles to the doorway of South Bank University and tried to remove her trousers, before once again exposing himself.
A security guard intervened and the victim was left with bruising down her legs, but Victorin was able to flee the scene and attack again.
Four sex attacks on separate women in under four hours
On January 4, Victorin carried out four similar sexual assaults on separate women over the space of three-and-a-quarter hours, between 11am and 2.15pm.
One victim described how he was “panting” as he grabbed her hips, while another was said to be so distressed she was “hyperventilating” when he groped her thighs.
He grabbed a woman around the waist and between her legs, leaving her “repeatedly screaming” for help.
He also attempted to push women to the ground, as well as pushing himself into them from behind.
‘This frankly is most people’s nightmare’
At an earlier hearing, prosecutor Claire Harden-Frost said: “These offences can be seen as part of a campaign to rape and sexually assault women walking alone in the streets of London.
“This, frankly is most people’s nightmare in this situation.”
Victorin was identified after detectives theorised the attacker might be on some kind of curfew because of the timing of the offences and tracked him down to where he was living in the probation hostel in Walworth
Judge Silas Reid described the victim impact statements as “heart-wrenching”, with several of the women reporting recurring PTSD, paranoia and a fear of leaving the house in the aftermath of the assaults.
Previous convictions
Victorin has seven previous convictions for 14 offences dating back to 2014.
He was jailed for a total of 17 months in February 2019 for unlawful wounding and possession of an offensive weapon.
Victorin sexually assaulted two prison guards while serving his sentence and was jailed for a year over the attacks, as well as a separate sexual assault on a female police officer in March last year.
He was released halfway through his sentence in August, but recalled to prison after being charged with possession of cannabis and outraging public decency – by having consensual sex in a park in front of people, including children – and was then freed under licence in December.
When he was released Victorin was subject to six months of post-sentence supervision, which required good behaviour and contact with a supervising officer.
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Stephen Akinsanya, defending, earlier said his client’s “indication of remorse is genuine”, adding: “This is a young man who is unable, or has been unable, to contain sexual urges and it is an area in which he needs help.”
Reports from psychologists and medical professionals also determined that he had a personality disorder.
In his sentencing remarks, judge Reid said, “From the fact of your previous sexual offending and your offending in this case, you are a highly dangerous individual.”
He described Victorin as a “sexual predator” and also determined he was “a significant risk of serious harm being caused to members of the public”.
Metropolitan Police Detective Sergeant Chloe Angris said: “Victorin is a prolific offender who assaulted six women over a 12-day period.
“It is possible that there might be other women who were assaulted by him, and I would urge them to contact us.
“The Met is committed to tackling violence against women and girls, and with Victorin’s imprisonment Southwark is a safer place.”
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